Bloodborne: What Lurks Beneath
by DaedricEclipse
Summary: It started with a transfusion to cure his illness. It became a fight for survival and his responsibility as a Hunter to end the plague of beasts that threatened the city of Yharnam. Before his journey begins, however, a force intervenes. Now, he is something more than a Hunter. Let the Hunt, and the Game, begin. Crossover with Bloodborne, the Gamer, and possibly more to come.
**A/N: Hello, my dear readers. I'm sorry that I have been inactive for so long; a combination of a lack of creativity, real life affairs, and school work has left me with little time to write. In addition, I must apologize in advance: I may or may not be cancelling some of my stories. The reason for this is that for half of them were born of sudden and temporary inspiration and poor planning. My first story, in particular, was started primarily because of excitement from reading other such stories on this site.**

 **That story, and perhaps several others, may never be finished to due to a lack of ideas, a fading interest in the story or source material in general, and real life obstacles. Thus, if you feel like you want to continue the story or stories yourself, then feel free to PM me so that we can arrange something.**

 **With all of that said and done, I'm writing this story partially out of curiosity and partly because of an experiment I want to conduct. After reading a number of Gamer crossover stories, I felt like making another such crossover, this time with Bloodborne as the affected universe. Depending on your feedback, reviews, and interest in this story, this** **chapter may be either a oneshot or the first chapter of many. I will be taking suggestions from all of you who review on what perks, stats, items, and quests to write into the story.**

 **The Hunter will progress as one would normally in Bloodborne, though obviously a variety of things will be changed to accommodate the effects of the Hunter being The Gamer. I will attempt to keep him from being overpowered, as such a thing would detract from some of the main themes and selling points of the game: horror, a sense of futility, struggle, and the satisfaction of making progress.**

 **Because I am almost certain that I will be making mistakes in grammar, punctuation, and in lore/plotholes, I will try to get a Beta to check everything over before I post the story. If I can't get a Beta, then I'll just continue as I have, so I apologize if you spot errors in the later chapters.**

 **Now that I've gotten all of that said and done, enjoy the chapter and feel free to leave a review if you wish. Any constructive criticism will be very much appreciated.**

 **Also, bear in mind that I update my chapters as I go along. So if it seems like I'm missing half the chapter, it's because I haven't written the rest or have yet to update the story with the completed chapter.**

 **Disclaimer : I do not own Bloodborne, the Gamer, or any other related content. All material in this story, including characters and story, are property of their respective owners.**

* * *

The Hunter stood - his body motionless and the ethereal glow that surrounded it moments before slowly fading - from his position across from the Great One that controlled the Hunter's Dream. The abomination growled in unbridled fury, directing a roar that would tear any normal human's mind asunder at the mortal that dared to defy it. In response, the Hunter brandished Rakuyo in its separated state, his arms poised to block or counterattack.

After all of the struggles he faced in his journey, after all of the deaths and failures he endured, his journey had finally reached its climax. He had slain hundreds, if not thousands of crazed men, beasts, and Great Ones alike to accomplish his mission as a Hunter.

Though, he did have some assistance along the way.

A brief, nearly imperceptible flicker of his eyes towards the upper left corner of his vision gave him all of the information that he needed, courtesy of his "Gamer" ability.

{}

 **Name: Ashton**

 **Title: Hunter**

 **Lv. 82**

 **HP: 7,789/24,000**

 **MP: 4,524/12,000**

 **SP: 2,176/7,000**

 **Hunter's Stats:**

 **Vitality: 80**

 **Endurance: 70**

 **Strength: 70**

 **Skill: 80**

 **Bloodtinge: 60**

 **Arcane: 60**

 **Insight: 99**

{}

His battle with Gehrman had taken more out of him than he had thought: his health was low and his mana was even lower. While his natural regeneration would have been able to take care of the health issue, it would also have taken several minutes to get back to what he thought was a combat-worthy level of health. To make matters worse, he hadn't been able to heal or restock his supplies before the Great One had revealed itself. Ashton would have to be cautious; the fact that the thing before him controlled the Hunter's Dream meant that it potentially had the power to negate his ability to resurrect after dying.

He could not afford to take any chances of failing, not after coming this far.

The Great One made the first move, charging at the Hunter with a swipe of its foot-long claws. The man barely managed to evade the attack by strafe jumping to the left, the blade-like fingers of the creature's hands grazing his right side and leaving shallow tears in his Hunter's Garb. He suppressed a grimace of pain and jumped backwards to avoid a swipe from the tentacles on the abomination's head.

Ashton lunged forward with Rakuyo and slashed at the Great One's head, landing a solid hit on its 'face' and eliciting a terrible shriek of pain from his foe. Enraged, it raised its hands above its head and swung down in an attempt to crush the Hunter like a bug. While he was able to dodge to the right, he was unable to avoid the headbutt that sent him tumbling to the side.

Scrambling to his feet, the Hunter pulled out a vial filled with blood and jammed it into his side, giving him some health back as he kept his gaze fixated on the Great One.

 **[HP: 8,789/24,000]**

A single mental command - **[Observe]** \- gave Ashton information that made his heart nearly stop and his blood freeze in his veins.

{}

 **The Moon Presence**

 **Lv. ?**

 **HP: 119,178/120,000**

 **MP: ?**

 **SP: ?**

 **Stats:**

 **Vitality: ?**

 **Endurance: ?**

 **Strength: ?**

 **Skill: ?**

 **Bloodtinge: ?**

 **Arcane: ?**

 **Insight: ?**

 **Status Effects:**

 **Enraged** \- 25% damage increase, 20% attack rate increase, 10% accuracy penalty.

 **Madness of the Great Ones** \- Inflicts 0.5% **Frenzy** effect per second on enemies when within 5-foot radius.

 **Perks:**

 **Host of the Hunter's Dream -** 30% damage resistance from all sources of damage, 30% damage increase to enemies within the Dream.

 **Mind of a Great One** \- Lined with countless eyes, a Great One's mind allows the use of psychic attacks to overwhelm the mind of unenlightened enemies.

 **Body of a Great One** \- Resistant to **Stagger** effect and visceral attacks, additional 15% damage resistance to physical, blood, and arcane attacks.

{}

The Hunter, despite fighting and slaying so many horrors and abominations without so much as flinching, felt a harsh shiver run down his spine as his breathing grew increasingly panicked. The Great One, which he now knew as 'the Moon Presence,' was even more formidable than he had thought. It had far more health than any other enemy he had fought before, and the true measure of its stats was hidden from even his **[Observe]** Skill. In contrast, he was still injured and exhausted from his fight with Gehrman. He was low on Quicksilver Bullets and Blood Vials, and whatever other supplies he had would probably have little to no effect on the thing he was facing.

Ashton would likely not survive this fight...but as this thought occurred to him, he realized that he was not afraid. Before, even with the mental protection that his myriad of Skill and powers provided, he still felt a twinge of anxiety or dread whenever he faced a beast that was stronger and larger than the others. Now, however, as he rose to his full height and walked calmly towards the Moon Presence while it roared and charged at him, he felt no fear, no doubt, and no nervousness.

All he felt was a fierce determination and a grim acceptance of whatever fate awaited him. He pulled out from his Inventory a worn, dust-covered human bone and grasped it firmly in his hand, the arcane power housed within it filling his body and forming a faint aura by his feet. When the Moon Presence lunged at him with the intent to skewer him with its spear-like claws, he disappeared in a cloud of mist and reappeared behind it. The Hunter took the opportunity presented to him and slashed furiously at the Great One's vulnerable rear, scoring a good dozen or so hits before the Moon Presence spun on its heel and slammed its hand into Ashton. The impact sent him flying into the lone tree on the flower-covered hill, a painful crack ringing in the air as the man let out a cry of pain.

 **[HP: 6,423/24,000]**

Unwilling to leave himself open to any more attacks, the Hunter forced the pain out of his mind and jumped to his feet, dashing forward while he stowed Rakuyo away in his Inventory. In the few seconds it took for him to reach the Moon Presence, a long-barreled pistol and a long, silver claymore had appeared in his hands. Ashton swung the claymore down on the Moon Presence's head, the blade's edge impacting the bone-like structure with a small shower of sparks and leaving a shallow cut on its surface. The Hunter ducked down to avoid a swing of the Great One's arm and slashed his sword upwards at the offending limb, clipping the flesh of the arm and eliciting an unearthly wail of either pain or anger from the eldritch horror. The man preemptively 'blinked' backwards, disappearing and reappearing in a cloud of mist over a dozen feet away from his foe.

The human's eyes flickered upwards to check what damage had done, and cursed under his breath.

 **Moon Presence**

 **HP: 107,605/120,000**

It was going to take a while before he was going to make any real progress with slaying this otherworldly being. He would have to alter his fighting style to deal enough damage to make the effort of attacking worth it. With that in mind, he once again 'blinked' forward and used the strength of his legs to jump over the Moon Presence in a front-flip, using the movement of his body to momentarily drag his claymore along the creature's back while simultaneously firing several rounds from the long pistol into its body. As he landed on his feet behind his opponent, he swiveled on his heel and swung hard on the Great One's back legs, sending a stream of blood onto the ground and staining the surface of his blade with the being's inhuman ichor.

Without warning, the horrific creature grasped at its head as light gathered around its body; realizing what was about to happen, Ashton tried to jump away but was too late to avoid the enormous burst of light that burned his eyes, nose, and skin. He landed on his back with a heavy thud, his breath knocked out of his lungs and his mind working frantically to get a grasp on the situation. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed the Moon Presence stalking towards him, a harsh growl emanating from within its throat.

Ignoring the agony and lack of his breath that his body was experiencing, he clumsily rolled backwards and onto his feet, taking a moment to examine his health when his entire body seized up at what he saw.

 **[HP: 1/24,000]**

Faint panic consumed his being as his attention returned to the enraged Great One that was poised to jump onto him and crush him beneath its weight. He dove to the side just as his larger foe landed on the patch of ground he previously occupied, then proceeded to hurriedly grab a Blood Vial and jam it into his side, a twinge of relief escaping in the form of a sigh as his health recovered by over two thousand.

The Hunter was about to use another Blood Vial when the Moon Presence closed the distance between them and lunged at him, forcing him to roll underneath the Dream's Host to avoid the attack. Taking the small window of opportunity while the Great One turned to face him again, he injected the contents of the Blood Vial in his hands into himself and rose to his feet. Storing his pistol in his Inventory, he grasped his claymore with two hands as the blade became covered in ethereal green moonlight and sprinted at the Moon Presence.

Ashton jumped just as the Great One reared its arm back to swipe at him, the tip of his moonlight-covered greatsword emitting a faint flash of white light before he plunged the blade into the neck of the abomination. The Moon Presence howled louder than he could have ever imagined as a spray of black ichor sprang from its rotting flesh; staggered, the eldritch being fell to its knees as Ashton summoned a burst of strength to rip his sword free through the side of his opponent's neck in a visceral attack.

While the Great One bled and struggled to get to its feet, the Hunter glanced at its health.

 **Moon Presence**

 **HP: 90,132/120,000**

He was certainly making progress, but he was only a quarter of the way into this fight. Using another of his remaining Blood Vials, he prepared for the Great One to retaliate as it looked him dead in the eyes-

Agony. That was all his body felt for the next five seconds that seemed to stretched for eternity. His mind was assaulted with images and memories that were not his, and scratched at his burning eyes as his vision was filled with the sight of the horror in front of him growing and changing, shrieking endlessly as the vo **ices kept screaming in his ears and his brain. Their tormented wails echoing throughout every fiber of his being as the claws of couNTLESS BEASTS TORE AT HIS BODY, HIS HEART, HIS SOUL!**

 **THE GAZE OF THOUSANDS AND MILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF EYES FIXATED ON HIM AND JUDGING HIM LIKE THE WORTHLESS PILE OF FLESH HE WAS! HE COULD FEEL HIMSELF FALLING INTO AN ENDLESS BLACK VOID, THEIR EYES AND CLAWS AND SCREAMS NEVER CEASING, UNRELENTING! _MAKE IT STOP! MAKE THEM STOP! NO MORE! TOO MANY! PAIN, HUNGER, WANT, HATE, TERROR! IT WAS TOO MUCH! TOO MUCH!_**

 **[WArn1ng! GaMer'$ mInd oVerlo-D$ng! $trEss 3xcee^in & mAx*MuM LiMIT$. Fa!luR3 IMM!n*#t.]**

 _ **THEY ARE ENDLESS, TIMELESS, AGELESS! GUIDED, MANIPULATED HUMANITY FOR AGES! THEY CAN'T BE STOPPED! THE MOON PRESENCE CAN'T BE STOPPED! I CAN'T! CAN'T RESIST! I CAN'T DO IT ANYM-**_

 _"Stop."_

The sound of a single word, spoken with a woman's melodic voice that filled his entire being with serenity and calm, banished all of the demons and madness that were on the brink of consuming him entirely.

 **[ &aMEr'$ mInd retur-ing t0 normal stress levels. Exposure to the thoughts and presence of numerous eldritch beings has significantly increased the strength of Gamer's Mind.]**

 _"You are safe, now."_

All of the screams and the endless number of eyes watching him dissipated into nothing as he found himself laying in a field that seemed to stretch forever in every direction. The moon, no longer the color of blood and causing madness-induced whispers in his mind, hung in the sky amidst a sea of stars and illuminated the field with a faint white glow.

 **[HP, MP, and SP have been fully restored.]**

Slowly, Ashton propped himself up with his elbows as he looked around in equal parts curiosity and weariness. The only things that seemed to exist were the field, himself, the moon, and the stars above. Several questions forced their way to the forefront of his mind, 'Who was the woman that spoke to him? How did he get here? _Why_ was he here?'

Then, from his left side, the Hunter heard the woman speak with the same soothing voice as before.

 _"I can give you the answers that you seek, fair Hunter."_

He looked to the left to see a woman who seemed to be embody the meaning of perfection and beauty. Standing at a few inches shorter than him, she looked at him with brilliant jade eyes that radiated warmth and happiness. The rest of her face - her cheeks, nose, brow, and chin - were perfectly shaped, like the statue of an ancient goddess that he once saw at an art exhibition before he came to Yharnam. The woman's skin was a light chocolate-brown that seemed to absorb and radiate the moonlight that illuminated the field. Her long, flowing seafoam-green hair draped across her shoulder and ran down her back until coming to a stop at her knees. Covering her body was a simple but elegant sky-blue dress that reached down to her ankles and hugged her voluptuous form. A crown or tiara comprised of various species of flowers rested atop her head, while a lotus-shaped silver necklace hung from around her neck.

As he gazed speechlessly upon the heavenly beauty standing near him, he realized that she was waiting for him to respond and rose to his feet, "I assume that you are the one who saved me from succumbing to madness, madam? If so, then I am sincerely thankful for your help."

The Hunter made it halfway into a bow before the woman raised one hand for him to stop while soft and melodious laughter escaped her lips, _"There is no need for formalities around me, Hunter. After so long, I've truthfully grown tired of acting with such decorum."_

Ashton straightened his back with a slightly flustered nod, brushing off stray blades of grass and dirt particles that had clung onto his Hunter's clothing, "Well then, ma'am, please allow me to introduce myself before we talk any further. My name is Ashton, may I ask what your's is?"

The woman's mouth curved upward to form a smile that could melt the coldest of hearts, _"Certainly, Ashton. I am Gaia, the goddess of the Earth."_

Ashton's body tensed the moment the word 'goddess' left the lips of the woman now known as Gaia, images of Great Ones and other so-called 'deities' such as Rom, Mergo, Amygdala and the Moon Presence flashing in his mind. The Hunter instincts that were ingrained in him after spending so long in Yharnam took control from the logical side of his mind as his body entered 'fight or flight' mode.

Gaia raised one of her slender hands in a placating gesture as she spoke, _"Please, calm yourself, Ashton. Despite what you may be thinking, I am not like the Great Ones that toy with Yharnam and its inhabitants. Unlike the Great Ones who came from beyond the stars, I have always been tied to the Earth and the beings who live on it. I understand that your previous experiences with the Great Ones have likely tainted your view of otherworldly or supernatural beings, but I promise that you have nothing to fear from me."_

The Hunter was silent and motionless for a few moments that seemed to drag on for ages. While one side of him was absolutely certain that Gaia was a Great One and needed to be destroyed, the rational side of him said that he should at least hear the woman out before passing judgement. Then, with a weary sigh, he let his arms drop to his sides and brought himself back to standing upright. Despite his now-neutral posture, the caution and suspicion present in his gaze still remained.

 _"Thank you, Ashton. Now, as I said before we introduced ourselves, I will gladly answer any questions that you may have,"_ Gaia told the Hunter, who merely nodded in response and brought a hand to his chin to organize his thoughts.

The brief silence that ensued was broken when he looked back at Gaia, "Alright. First, I want to know the reason why you saved me from...whatever it was that the Great One was doing to me."

The green-haired goddess was quick to respond, _"I think that it is fairly obvious why I saved you, Hunter. You were mere seconds from being driven completely insane by the Great One's attack on your mind. Were it not for your gift acting as a mental barrier, it is likely that I would not have been able to reach you in time to bring you here to safety."_

"Speaking of 'here,' where exactly are we?" The Hunter gestured at the field that surrounded them, still stretching endlessly towards the flat horizon.

 _"We are currently inside of a safe haven where we can speak without fear of any Great Ones trying to attack your mind. While I could be more specific and say that this is part of my mind, it would not be entirely accurate. It is more of a...separate dimension, I suppose, that I created with the power of my mind and can alter as I see fit,"_ the goddess replied.

As if to prove her point, Gaia held out her right hand with the palm facing the sky and closed her eyes. A small sphere of silver light formed in the palm of her hand and proceeded to grow until it reached the size of an apple; from there, it quickly took the form of a necklace with the symbol of the Hunters hanging by a thin chain.

Ashton looked between the necklace and Gaia, then let out a sigh of resignation, "Makes as much sense as anything else I've seen tonight. My second question is what exactly this 'gift' that you keep mentioning is."

The goddess merely smiled in response, _"It should be obvious. After all, the notification must have appeared in your vision when I brought here."_

The Hunter looked at her with shock on his face for a few brief moments before his expression gradually shifted to one of realization, "It was you. You're the reason why I have this 'Gamer' ability."

Gaia nodded in response, her expression conveying amusement and satisfaction, _"Correct, Ashton."_

His gaze fell to the ground, and he said nothing for a short time while he went over what had been said. Then, he slowly raised his head to look the goddess in the eyes, "If that is the case, then why? Why would you give me that power out of all of the other Hunters that have come and gone? There were other Hunters who deserved it far more than I did: Eileen, Gascoigne, Djura...Gehrman. They were stronger and more experienced than I was, and they would have used the ability much more effectively than I have. They would have been able to make a difference! They would have been able to fight back against this plague! They would have...they would have _lived_. Instead, they're dead, and three of them fell by my hands. So answer me, Gaia: Why did you choose _me_?!"

The goddess was quiet, her eyes drifting shut and her mouth reduced to a thin line that bordered on a frown. A gaping pit of unease formed in the Hunter's chest, his mind already racing as it calculated countless possible outcomes of the woman's response.

Finally, Gaia opened her brilliant green eyes, which gazed into his and seemed to look through his very being, her mouth curling upwards to form a smile once more as she spoke, " _The reason that I chose to give the power of the Gamer to you is because of_ your _reasons for coming this far, your reasons for coming to Yharnam, for taking the blood transfusion, for signing the contract to become a Hunter, and for continuing to fight when others would have given up: You did it all for the sake of others._ "

Ashton stared at her with a raised eyebrow, wordlessly telling her to continue explaining. The goddess obliged.

" _Before coming to Yharnam, you were the lone survivor of your hamlet after it was burned down on the suspicion of the presence of the plague of beasts. Despite losing everything and everyone that you knew and loved, you continued on, for the sake of those you lost. You dedicated your life to helping those who were less fortunate in a port city, giving what food and water you could spare to the homeless and sick while working as a weapon-smith's apprentice for the Hunters. The people that you fed and showed kindness to became dependent upon you, as the beacon of light and hope in their lives. The homeless and destitute, the young and old, all those who were viewed as the undesirables of society, you grew to see them as family."_

 _"Then, you fell ill. Your life was numbered down to a mere two weeks. Yet you refused to give up hope, and you sought a cure. You found it in the form of the Paleblood, though you knew it would come at a cost; and still you went through with it, for your new family. And so you traveled to Yharnam, signed a Hunter's contract and took the Paleblood infusion. After that, you fought your way through beast and Nightmare alike, forging ahead regardless of how many times you died or how much you suffered."_

 _"You originally came to Yharnam for the sake of those cast aside, whom you grew to love as family. Once you became a Hunter, however, you no longer fought just for them. You fought for the people you brought to sanctuary in Oedon Chapel, you fought for Eileen, you fought for the girl you saved from the jaws of death...and most of all, you fought for the sake of all of Yharnam."_

 _"You had every opportunity to succumb to the temptation of both the Paleblood, and the power that I gave you. But you did not. You thought only of those you held dear and of those who could not defend themselves whenever you used that power. I gave you the power of the Gamer, because I had faith that you would make the right choices, and use that power to do what was right."_

Gaia smiled down at the Hunter with a warmth that filled his entire body.

 _"You proved that I made the right choice."_

After several moments, Ashton nodded, "Thank you, Gaia."

The goddess looked up at the moon, then returned her gaze to the Hunter, _"You've fought long and hard, Ashton, and now it is time for you to bring an end to this night. As you are right now, you are no match for the Moon Presence, as you will simply be overwhelmed by its psychic attacks."_

Ashton watched as the goddess approached him until coming to a halt within arm's reach of him. Gaia held up her right hand, and an orb of pure white light formed in her hands, which radiated an unearthly yet familiar warmth. Her voice echoed from all around him as she spoke, _"As such, I will bestow upon you my blessing. With it, you will be able to end the Moon Presence, and free Yharnam from this eternal night. Take it, Ashton, and use it to finally wake from this Dream."_

She held out her hand in offering, the orb of light growing brighter as it approached him. For a brief instant, Ashton looked as if he was conflicted about whether or not to accept, a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes...until they hardened with resolve and he reached his hand out to receive her gift.

The moment his hand made contact with the light, his entire body was enveloped with that same light, a power unlike anything he'd ever felt before coursing through him.

 **[You have received Gaia's Blessing! Grants complete immunity to Frenzy and the psychic assaults of the Great Ones, +100% to total Health/Magic/Stamina, +100% damage against all enemies, +150% health regeneration in combat - regeneration increased from 50 HP per minute to 500 HP every minute, +100% damage resistance against Great Ones.]**

 **[Fight on, Good Hunter.]**

Once the light finally faded to a faint glow that outlined his body, Ashton looked up at Gaia just in time to notice that the world was fading to white, the goddess who created it disappearing with it as her voice rang in his ears, _"Good luck, Ashton...and farewell."_

Then, in a flash of light, Ashton found himself standing before the Moon Presence once again, which reeled back in either shock or fury as its foe reappeared before it.

The Hunter looked up at the Great One that stood between him and the end of the Hunt, and narrowed his eyes in determination. Rakuyo appeared in twin-blade form in his right hand, and in left appeared Evelyn.

Ashton felt the power of **[Gaia's Blessing]** surge through him once more, and his hands tightened around his weapons as he assumed his favored stance.

His voice rang out across the Hunter's Dream before he and the Moon Presence charged at each other, "It's time for the night to end, and the day to dawn."


End file.
